“No, I do not need you to lift for me. Given your questionable skills I think I can do a considerably better job than you. No. I need you to be our eyes and ears on the streets. First of all I need that man; the one who was hiding in the trees in the park. I need you to keep your ear to the ground and find out who he is and where he comes from. He is in that area somewhere. I think he may live nearby. He certainly knows the streets well.” Luke leaned forward in his seat. “More importantly, I want that woman. I need to know where she disappeared to. Where she lives is important to us because, aside from you, she was the only other person in that park the other morning. She may have witnessed the man’s murder, or seen his killer but just doesn’t realise it, or won’t talk about it.”
The boy suddenly grinned. “Is she yours?”
“No.” Luke shook his head firmly. “We just need to ask her some questions.”
Marcus leaned forward. “Don’t forget that there was a body in that park on the morning you tried to rob her. You were there. The killer was still there too. Needless to say, you need to watch your backs in that park and around those parts. Don’t hang around in that park too long and certainly don’t go there after dark. It’s not safe. He may have seen you watching him.”
“Who was it?” The girl demanded, then hesitated and wafted her hand about. “The dead man?”
“We don’t know yet. The magistrate is working on it. It’s not important right now. Who was in that park alive is.”
“It weren’t us who killed ‘im,” the boy declared flatly, somewhat panicked at the possibility that he was going to get blamed for something he didn’t do.
“I never said it was,” Luke countered. “Do you work in the park often?”
The children shrugged. “Sometimes but only early in the morning, and late in the evening. We mainly stick to the streets.”
“Right, well, where do you call base? If I need to find you, where is best to wait for you, or leave a message for you?”
The boy considered that for a moment then shrugged. He didn’t have any objection to the girl telling them and remained quiet while she spoke.
“The old shoe shop by the bridge in Camden. Someone is there all the time. Leave a message with Leo. He will get it to us,” the girl replied.
“Who are you?” the boy piped up, eyeing Luke’s clothing suspiciously. “Do you work for the magistrate? I don’t want no links with ‘im,” he protested loudly.
“No, I am not linked to the magistrate. I am just someone you don’t want to cross.” Luke withdrew two pennies from his pocket and held them aloft for the kids to see. “Now, you work around Camden, and stick to the streets. Sayers must be a harsh task-master if he has you up and about so early in the morning, but I suppose the barrow men are busy setting up their stalls and are open to being targeted, aren’t they?”
Marcus nodded when both children jerked at the mention of the East End’s notorious gang master: Terrence Sayers. There were rumours afoot that Sayers was involved in more than running gangs of thieves. The Star Elite suspected that he was involved in drugs, owned many brothels and gambling houses in the city, and ran some kind of protection racket. How that had anything to do with the dead body that appeared in the park though was something they had yet to uncover, but Luke suspected it was all linked somehow, and these children were going to be a very valuable source of information, and help, if the Star Elite ever needed it.
All Luke and Marcus had to do was get them on side and keep them there.
“We ain’t with Sayers. He ain’t our boss,” the boy suddenly declared.
“Who is?” Luke countered. When the children didn’t speak, Luke leaned forward in his seat. “There is a bigger gang working the area, mostly of older children. They are ruthless thugs. Criminals, not people you should mess with if you know what I mean?” He waited until the children nodded. “Do you work with them?”
Both children shook their heads violently.
“We ain’t with them. We dunno who they are,” Lucy announced.
“Stay away from them,” Marcus warned. “They are dangerous.”
“What would you say if I told you I want to put you both on my payroll? I will pay you both a couple of pennies a day – each, and will not ask you to pick-pocket anything apart from whatever your boss says you should take back that keeps him off your backs. All I need is for you to find that woman and tell me where she lives and keep an eye out for that man you saw in the woods. Follow him home if he does appear. Don’t approach him and don’t try to talk to him. He may be a killer so don’t try to lift anything from him either, or the woman for that matter.” When both children continued to look sceptical, Luke knew he would have to increase the stakes. “Not only that, but we will arrange for you to receive a pie each the likes of which you have just eaten, and enough extra food to make sure you don’t starve, and have enough left to sneak bits to your friends.”
“If we do that they will be suspicious and want to know where it’s coming from,” the boy argued, eyeing the basket greedily.
“Then we will give you just enough food for yourselves then,” Marcus countered. “You can hide it away and need never tell them. That way, you can eat properly and won’t have to work so hard so you are less likely to be arrested for stealing.”
“What if we don’t agree to help you?” The boy asked curiously.
“You can go back to Sayers and continue to work, and hope you don’t pick-pocket from the wrong person and end up in the magistrate’s hands,” Marcus said.
The girl shrugged. “I’ll do it.”
“Lucy,” the boy whispered and flicked the men an exasperated look when he realised he had revealed her name.
“What? We can get food and money, and all for keeping our eyes and ears open. I want to look for the lady again. What does it matter if we get paid doing it?” she declared defiantly. “I’ll do it. You do what you want but I will take the money and the food.”
“Name?” Luke asked with lifted brows at the boy.